Dedicated to the pain
by OHYA
Summary: Naruto returns from his three year training trip, now cold and emotionless from all that he had to do for survival. How his inner turmoil affects him and those around him as new threats are uncovered and new feelings are awakened.


Ok, this would be my second Naruto fic

**Ok, this would be my second Naruto fic. It's been floating around in my head for a while now; I just can't get it out without writing it down. It is basically an AU fic about what happens after Naruto comes back. It's a dark Naruto fic and therefore will contain blood, gore, violence, maybe sex, character death, and all the "good stuff" that is vital in any good fic (not really…).**

**As a writer, I like to listen to music, so here are some songs that I listened to while writing this chapter:**

**Thought of a bride-Blowsight**

**All around me- by flyleaf**

**Kryptonite- by 3 doors down**

**These songs can be found here in this url address, minus the parenthesis: playlist(.)com/user/27136122**

**One of these songs (all around me) has a woman as the lead singer (not that I have a problem with it what so ever, some people might)-deal with it. I will post songs every chapter if this is not deemed "unworthy" to be read by you all, the viewers. Yes, this is experimental.**

**Reviews are always appreciated, so, I would appreciate it if you would review.**

**Claimer: I own the plot of this article of writing, any OC I place in the plot; if any; same goes for original jutsus and such. You know the drill.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the plot of the Naruto series, or any of the characters that aren't OCs, non original jutsus, etc.**

**Theses two notices should apply for all of the chapters, so fuck off lawyers.**

The pleasant breeze that made its way through the uneven path that the two completely indifferent figures were now walking upon, created a light ruffle in the forestry surrounding them. It swayed in-between the wild blonde locks of one Uzumaki Naruto.

His two and a half year training 'adventure' had been filled with mind numbing tortures.

The group of nuke-nins known as the 'akatsuki' had been much more active than Jaraiya had anticipated. They had battled the group many a time and almost died equally as much. They had not managed to kill a single member of the group.

This was mostly because of the fact that the group became more organized, sending out two groups of elite akatsuki founders at a time to fight them off, realizing that Jaraiya was much too large of a threat to be taken lightly. The attacks had started when they were at the farthest point away from Konoha, with no hope of contacting their home village, they did what shinobi were trained to do, kill, and kill well. They killed and killed and maimed and murdered until Naruto's soul, was completely black and hardened, gaining him the title of a true shinobi.

Even Jaraiya, praised as one of the best shinobi to ever be created behind the walls of Konohas border, felt some of the affects of so much

_Blood,_

_Agony,_

_Suffering._

Naruto and Jaraiya had also been fought by Orochimaru and _Sasuke…_ Naruto took on the Uchiha whilst Jaraiya took on Orochimaru. The fight went on for hours, each exchanging blow after blow, but it was not enough. Orochimaru apparently prepared for such an occurrence and brought what could have been a small army of his rejects from society. Naruto and Jaraiya had fought vigorously to no avail; they were just too much for even them. Jaraiya was knocked completely unconscious before Naruto was transformed unceremoniously into his four tailed kyuubi form. He defeated half of the entire army of Orochimaru's creation only to be attacked by Sasuke after being held captive by a new jutsu that Orochimaru had concocted for just this particular situation. He was tortured for hours until Sasuke grew bored and had tried to end Naruto's life via stab to the cranium with Sasuke's overpowered _chidori._ Had it not been for the Kyuubi's massive amount of chakra, and his rapid rebuilding of Naruto's body, Sasuke would have succeeded in his murder.

No formal training had actually taken place during this trip; the duo was too busy fighting for their lives to have enough time for such, privileges. All the training was taken place on the battlefield, where one crucial mistakes price tag is one item that means everything to that of the 'purchaser'; their life.

Naruto had changed immensely, both physically and mentally. Perhaps the largest physical change was that because of the fact that he had to use so much of the demon fox's power, his body adapted to handle more of the undomesticated energy. He now had slightly broader shoulders, since his fusion coils expanded not only in length, but in width. His hair had changed due to the fact that he needed to store this menacing chakra in every fiber of his now muscular body. His locks had grown in length and in color depth, they were now darker, a dull yellow instead of a vibrant gold. They were also about twice as long.

His eyes were the most startling of all, they were now crimson, a color akin to the iron filled liquid that he continuously spilled onto the ground; the blood of his enemies. His apparel had also altered, he now wore a simple black, short sleeve shirt and grey shinobi pants. It was simple; it blended in nicely, and was out of the way. He also allowed himself a jacket of sorts. It was a rather thin midnight black flack jacket. It had a few pockets throughout the article and protected him from some of the less fatal damage.

He also had a battered kunai holster strapped to his right thigh, it was the one he had used back when he was a genin, but it got the job done none-the-less. Adorning his feet was a pair of your average black shinobi sandals. From a distance, he didn't look like much of a threat, that was until the onlooker fell motionless to the ground; an undeniably large clean slice to the neck, now oozing with blood, being the cause.

Hidden within the thigh pouch that belonged to Naruto lie your average shinobi equipment all placed inside two medium sized scrolls.

And here they were, survivors of a seemingly never-ending battle, heading towards their home town, one a seasoned veteran of the shinobi way, another a now hardened warrior of that same allegiance.

As the two neared the hefty wooden gate that was the Konoha entrance, the younger of the two decided to speak his thoughts on a minuscule whim: "It's been a rather long time since we've seen our own territory, no?" spoke Naruto in an ever monotonously raspy voice. "Yes it has, hasn't it" stated a slightly confident Jaraiya. The conversation could have gone on, but Naruto rarely ever indulged in useless and unnecessary subjects such as what can be recognized as 'conversation'.

They soon reached the booth that housed what can be considered to be akin to "border patrol"…

"Jaraiya-sama!" was the lone statement one of the two guards yelled out in surprise, it was not a daily occurrence that one of the most revered and 'amazing' ninja walk by you. "Yes, we are reporting that we have returned to Konoha, obviously" Stated a somewhat energetic Jaraiya. No amount of death would ever change his attitude…

Naruto stood in the distance, a practiced and expertly crafted monotonous visage painted upon his face whilst he looked into the near by crowd of ignorant villagers.

Jaraiya filled out the small amount of paperwork that was required and was about to leave when the guard situated at the far end of the booth uttered his question: "hey, is that Naruto?!" Hearing his name, Naruto turned to face the chuunin in the cubicle, face constantly calm and collected. "You would be correct in your estimates" Was his simple reply. The guard that had questioned Naruto just stared for what seemed like eternity before muttering a quick "hai" and approving their papers rather hurriedly.

Naruto and Jaraiya walked into the crowd of civilians, and a few moments later, decided to part ways; Naruto needing to get situated again, and Jaraiya needing to file the paper work and inform their fifth hokage; Tsunade, of all that had happened during a good portion of the last three years.

Naruto walked casually down the street, not caring in the slightest of what was taking place around him. He watched the movements of the crowd with a trained eye, for anything suspicious, as he was trained to do. It wasn't long before he reached the less densely populated parts of town, the edge of the suburbs; if you will.

-X-X-X-Hokage Tower, about the time of Naruto's arrival-

"I heard from the gate patrollers that Naruto is back, you can go see him if you so choose" stated a rather optimistic Tsunade.

Sakura's hand stiffened in nervousness against the window she was currently looking through. It had been so long since she had seen her blonde teammate; she wondered what he looked like, and what he was going to think of her. "Hai; Tsunade-sama" was her one lingering sentiment as she continued to stare out the window. Tsunade just smiled at her protégé and turned slowly around before walking back towards her office; she still had paperwork to finish. Once she had reached her destination, she was greeted by the nonchalant face of her longtime friend and teammate; Jaraiya.

"Already here, I see" she stated only to find that Jaraiya had something of importance to tell her. "Come in Tsunade, we have much to discuss…"

-X-X-X-Naruto's location, near the outer reaches of Konoha-

Naruto continued to walk, demonic eyes constantly searching the horizon, towards his near home. He was now in what could only be described as the 'dumps' of the village. Only the poor and needy lived in the small apartments and shacks that adorned the sides of the road, yes, this was the place.

Naruto walked steadily down the road until he surprisingly sensed the chakra signature of his pink haired teammate; Haruno Sakura close by. He turned his head to the left just slightly, and as he had assumed, his teammate was running towards him; vibrant, wide spread smile upon her face. Naruto stopped and turned the rest of his body in anticipation of Sakura's arrival. Once she was within range of clear visibility the changes taken place upon Naruto's body started to become apparent to Sakura. Her eyes wandered aimlessly about his figure; she liked what she was seeing. 'Is_ that…Naruto?!'_

'_He looks so… Hot! His body is magnificent, and that hair…' _Sakura's last thought was followed by a tinge of pink being entertained upon her face. She soon neared Naruto and came to a halt in front of the blonde. "Hey Naruto!" she spouted cheerily, her hair now twisted in-between her fingers in conclusion to her nervousness. "Salutations, Sakura," stated Naruto ever so indifferently. This hampered Sakura's attempt at 'flirting' only slightly, as she was having trouble digesting all of the thoughts rushing through her head. "So Naruto, do I look more womanly now?" Asked Sakura sweetly as her blush only deepened. "I was actually on my way to do something relatively important before you showed up" said Naruto now slightly annoyed by Sakura's petty antics. Sakura's eyes opened and her visage, once joyous was now confused and hurt. It didn't help that Naruto just walked casually away towards his home; leaving Sakura there to do whatever useless activity she was intending to accomplish. Sakura was absolutely shocked at the scene, '_Naruto would never turn his back on me, that can't be him; can it?' _She thought silently to herself, now worried about Naruto's odd behavior.

**Hell yes, I finished the bitch.**

**Well, I'm sorry if this is a little too explanatory; it's more of a prologue than anything. **

**Just bear with me until the next few chapters when things start to get interesting, and you learn more of Naruto's absence and all that happened in Konoha during that time.**

**Yeah, I will try to update religiously but I am writing two fan fictions at the moment, so it might be a little while before I can post another chapter. **

**Reviews are like a lifeline, so It would be awesome if you could let me know what you think and tell me if there are any spelling/grammatical errors. **


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